We will never forget!

That fateful storm barreling through the Gulf, breaking our levees, and drowning our city resulted in the loss of 1,836 Americans. That day shrouded our city in darkness but it wasn’t the end for the people of New Orleans.

We are still mourning and we will never forget. As we once again mark the anniversary, the world finally sees what we knew all along.

We believed that — together — we could come back.

And we did.

There’s no other place, there is no other city in America that has been called upon to recreate the intricate fabric of their lives like we’re doing here in New Orleans.

And, while we’ve still got a long way to go, we’re not only back—in many ways we’re even stronger than we were before.

We’re not rebuilding the city we were, we’re creating the city we want to become.

When you think back and see how far we’ve come, it makes you proud to be a New Orleanian.

And it makes me proud to be mayor of a city with such resilient and determined people.

Today, as we honor those who lost their lives eight years ago, let us also rejoice in the progress we’ve made, and let us focus once again on what we can accomplish together in the years ahead.

The people of New Orleans are not only still standing, we are unbowed and unbroken, and stronger than ever before.

I, for one, can’t wait to show the world what we can do next – together.

– Mitchell J. Landrieu
Mayor
City of New Orleans

This letter originally published in the September 02, 2013 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.